Process of preparing fluorethylene

ABSTRACT

Hydrofluorination and dehydrofluorination reactions are accomplished over a catalyst bed formed by heating a bed of particles of porous alumina to a temperature of at least 220*F. and flowing therethrough a gaseous mixture of HF and an inert diluent until the hot zone of chemical reaction has passed completely through said bed.

United States Patent 1 Gardner 51 Apr. 10, 1973 PROCESS OF PREPARBIG FLUORETHYLENE [75] Inventor: Lloyd E. Gardner, Bartlesville,

Okla.

[73] Assignee: Phillips Petroleum Bartlesville, Okla.

[22] Filed: Dec. 4, 1970 21 Appl. No.: 95,330

Related U.S. Application Data [62] Division of Ser. No. 719,712, April 8, 1968, Pat. No. 3,607,955, which is a division of Ser. No. 398,442, Sept. 22, 1964, Pat. No. 3,413,360.

Company,

[52] U.S. Cl. ..260/653.4 [51] Int. Cl. ..C07c 17/20, C07c 21/18 [58] Field of Search ..260/653.4, 653.7

[56] References Cited FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 1,081,703 8/1967 Great Britain ..260/653 4 Primary ExaminerDaniel D. Horwitz Att0rneyJ. Arthur Young et a1.

[57 1 ABSTRACT 5 Claims, No Drawings PROCESS OF PREPARING FLUORETIIYLENE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This is a divisional application of my copending patent application having Ser. No. 719,712, filed Apr. 8 196 8 entitled Hydrofluorination and Dehydrofluorination and Catalysts Therefor, now U.S. Pat. 3,607,955, which was a divisional application of Ser. No. 398,442, filed Sept. 22, 1964, entitled I-Iydrofluorination and Dehydrofluorination and Catalysts Therefornow U.S. Pat. No. 3,413,360.

This invention relates to chemical reactions involving hydrogen fluoride and organic compounds, and to catalysts for promoting these reactions. In one aspect, the invention relates to the preparation of a catalyst for hydrofluorination and dehydrofluorination reactions by contacting alumina with hydrogen fluoride. In another aspect, it relates to hydrofluorination of acetylenic hydrocarbons over an alumina/hydrogen fluoride catalyst. In another aspect, it relates to dehydrofluorination of gem-difluoro compounds with an alumina/hydrogen fluoride catalyst. In yet another aspect it relates to conversion of chloroethylene to fluorethylene over an alumina/hydrogen fluoride catalyst. In still another aspect it relates to the separation of acetylenically unsaturated hydrocarbons from other hydrocarbons by means of hydrofluorination reactions.

The reaction of acetylenically unsaturated hydrocarbons with hydrogen fluoride over various aluminum containing catalysts is well documented in the prior art. Catalysts which have been mentioned for this application include alumina, aluminum fluoride, alumina-aluminum fluoride composite, alumina-antimony fluoride composite, alumina-cadmium fluoride composite, alumina-zinc fluoride composite, alumina-cobalt fluoride composite, aluminum sulfate, aluminum chloride, and aluminum chloride supported on alumina. The dehydrofluorination of gem-difluoro compounds to produce olefinically unsaturated monofluoro compounds is also known, and various catalysts have been used in this application. The prior art teachings, however, result in low conversion rates of the hydrocarbon to the fluoride, or an undesirably high ratio of saturated gem-difluoro compound to unsaturated monofluoro compound, or both.

It is an object of this invention to provide an improved process for the production of olefinically unsaturated monofluorides.

It is an object of this invention to provide an improved catalyst for hydrofluorination and dehydrofluorination reactions.

Another object is to produce a physically strong, active catalyst for selective monohydrofluorination reactions.

A further object of this invention is to provide an improved process for the interreaction of acetylene and hydrogen fluoride.

Another object of this invention is to provide an improved process for the dehydrofluorination of gemdifluoro compounds.

Still a further object of this invention is to produce vinyl fluoride.

These and other objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent, to one skilled in the art, from this specification and the appended claims.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the practice of this inventio, hydrofluorination and dehydrofluorination reactions are carried out in the presence of a catalyst prepared from the reaction of aluminum oxide with hydrogen fluoride gas at elevated temperatures. The catalyst formed by my method of physically strong, active, and highly selective for monohydrofluorination reactions.

The alumina used to prepare the catalyst is of a high porous, high surface area type. Preferably, the alumina is etaor gamma-alumina; less preferably, the alumina may be bauxite. The alumina can be used alone for the catalyst formation, or it can be combined with a metal containing constituent. This constituent is a fluoride of zinc, chromium, cobalt, silver, copper, vanadium, iron, or nickel, or a salt, oxide, or other form convertible to a fluoride by the subsequent high temperature reaction with hydrogen fluoride. The metal containing constituent can be incorporated in the alumina in any convenient manner. For example, the metal compound can be ground with the alumina and the resulting composite then pelleted. Alternately, the alumina can be impregnated with a solution containing the metal. If desired, the alumina catalyst with or without the added metal containing constituent can be partially fluorided by treatment with a solution of ammonium fluoride, ammonium bifluoride, or hydrogen fluoride prior to the vapor phase fluoridation.

Under condtions of elevated temperature, the alumina or alumina-metal composite described above will react vigorously with hydrogen fluoride vapor, and the fluorine content of the resulting product represents a substantial conversion of the alumina to fluorine-containing compounds of aluminum. This reaction is highly exothermic, and if not controlled may produce sufficient heat to cause sintering of the catalyst. In order to prevent overheating, it is desirable that an inert diluent gas be mixed with the hydrogen fluoride used in the reaction. Although nitrogen is the preferred diluent, any other gas which is inert toward the catalysts, reactants, and products of this invention under the reaction conditons employed may be used, such as carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, helium, neon, argon, and the like. The concentration of the diluent in the hydrogen fluoride will normally be maintained at 20-80 mol per cent, and preferably 40-60 mol per cent.

To initiate the reaction at a desirable rate and to insure complete removal of water from the system, the temperature of the alumina is brought to a minimum of 220F., and prferably to 250F. As the diluent containing hydrogen fluoride is introduced to the bed of alumina, a zone of high exotherm will result, starting at the inlet side of the alumina bed, and advancing across the bed to the outlet. It is desirable to maintain the maximum temperature reached in the hot zone below 750F., and preferably below 650F. This temperature is controlled by the rate of gas flow through the bed, as well as by the ratio of the hydrogen fluoride to diluent in the gas stream. A flow rate of between 10 and 1,000, and more preferably between 50 and 500, volumes (standard conditions) per volume of catalyst per hour is normally maintained. The gas flow is continued until the hot reaction zone has passed completely through the catalyst, at which time a copious amount of hydrogen fluoride is observed in the effluent gas.

The nature of the chemical compound formed by this reaction is undetermined, but it is believed to be some type of oxyfluoride or a combination of oxides, fluorides, and oxyfluorides. The fluoride content of the catalyst is in the range of 50-60 per cent. This is well below the theoretical content of fluoride in aluminum trifluoride. Additionally, hydrofluorination reaction yields with my catalyst are greatly in excess of those obtainable by using aluminum trifluoride itself as the catalyst.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The acetylenic hydrocarbons which I prefer to use in the hydrofluorination reaction employing the above catalyst have the formula wherein R is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen and alkyl and alkenyl radicals containing one to not more than eight carbon atoms, and preferably with the total number of carbon atoms in the acetylenic hydrocarbon not exceeding 10. Some examples of these preferred acetylenic hydrocarbons are:

acetylene propyne l-butyne 2'butyne Z-pentyne l-hexyne 3-octyne 2-decyne 3-methyl- 1 -pentyne 2,5-dimethyl-3-hexyne l-penten-4-yne l-hexen-S -yne 2-hepten-5-yne 3-ethyl-l -octen-6-yne 1,8-nonadien-4-yne. The acetylenic hydrocarbons containing no unsaturation other than the carbon-to-carbon triple bond are more preferred than those containing alkenyl groups, which tend to make the hydrocarbon more susceptible to undesired side reactions. In the hydrofluorination of these acetylenic hydrocarbons, the elements of hydrogen fluoride add to the triply bonded carbon atoms in conformance with the Markownikoff rule to give a fluoroalkene or fluoroalkapolyene in which the fluorine atom is attached to one of the carbon atoms adjacent the newly formed double bond. A gemdifluoroalkane, gem-difluoroalkene, or gem-difluoroalkadiene is formed as a minor product through the addition of the elements of two molecules of hydrogen fluoride to the triply bonded carbon atoms. The difluoro compound is readily converted to the desired fluoroalkene or fluoroalkapolyene by recycling over the catalyst of this invention.

In the hydrofluorination reaction, the mol ratio of hydrogen fluoride to acetylenic hydrocarbon is in the range of 0.2:1 to 20:1 and preferably between 1:1 and 2:1. Lower ratios result in lower conversation of the acetylenic hydrocarbon, and higher ratios give larger amountsv of the gem-difluoro compound. The flow rate of the reaction mixture is from to 5,000, and preferably from 200 to 1,000, volumes (standard conditions) per volume of catalyst per hour. The temperature in the reaction zone is maintained between 500F'. and 750F. Generally a temperature of 600 to 700F. is

used. As a matter of convenience, pressures are generally atmospheric, but higher or lower pressures may be employed when desired.

The hydrofluorination reaction can be employed to separate acetylenic hydrocarbons from mixtures containing olefinic or paraffinic hydrocarbons by means of the specific addition of HF to the triple bond. Subsequent separation of the fluorinated product from the hydrocarbons is readily accomplished by fractionation or other suitable means. In this application, the conditions specified above are observed, except that positive pressures as high as 1,000 psig are to be preferred, and

7 that a wider temperature range is permissible, generally where R is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen and alkyl and alkenyl radicals containing not more than eight carbon atoms, the total number of carbon atoms in the gem-difluoro compound preferably not exceeding 10. Some examples of these preferred gem-difluoro compounds are:

1 l -difluoroethane l ,1 -difluoropropane 2,2-difluoropropane 1 l -difluorobutane 2,2-difluorobutane 2,2-difluoropentane 2,2-difluorohexane 3,3-difluorooctane l, l -difluorodecane 2,2-difluorodecane 2,2-difluoro-3-methylpentane 3,3-difluoro-2,S-dimethylhexane 4,4-difluorol -pentene 6,6-difluoro-2-heptene 6 ,6-difluoro-3 -ethyll -octene 4,4-difluoro-l ,7-octadiene.

The saturated difluoro compounds are more preferred than those containing olefinic unsaturation.

In the dehydrofluorination of gem-difluoro compounds, the elements of hydrogen fluoride are removed from adjacent carbon atoms to produce the fluoroalkene or fluoroalkapolyene. When the difluoromethylene group is between two carbon atoms, to each of which is attached at least one hydrogen atom, isomeric fluoroalkenes and fluoroalkapolyenes are produced in a ratio dependent on the nature of the gem-difluoro compound and on the dehydrofluorination conditions.

Reaction condtions for the dehydrofluorination reaction according to this invention are flow rates of to 1,000, and preferably 50 to 200, volumes (standard conditions) per volume of catalyst per hour, and a reaction temperature of 500F. to 900 "F., generally in the range of 675F. to 725F. The pressure is substantially atmospheric, although higher or lower pressures may be employed, as desired.

The catalyst of my invention can also be used to form fluoroethylene by a substitution reaction between HF and chloroethylene. In this embodiment, the mol ratio of hydrogen fluoride to chloroethylene is between 0.121 and 10:1, preferably between 1:1 and 2 :1. Flow rate of the reactants can be 10-1 ,000 volumes, although a rate of 100-300 volumes (standard conditions) per volume of catalyst per hour is generally used. Temperatures of 300 800F. can be used, and 550700F. is preferred. Pressures are generally atmospheric, although higher or lower pressures can be used.

Small amounts of carbonaceous material will deposit on the catalyst while performing the various reactions, and over a period of time these deposite will cause a reduction in the efficiency of the reaction. These deposits may be removed periodically and the catalyst regenerated by passing over the catalyst dry air or oxygen, with or without a diluent, at a temperature of 600-950F. Minor amounts of fluorine are lost from the catalyst during this regeneration, but may readily be replaced by exposing the catalyst to hydrogen fluoride vapor for about one hour at a temperature of 600-675F.

In the following examples, the data are presented as being typical of the invention, and such data should not be construed to limit the invention unduly.

EXAMPLE I A fluorided alumina catalyst was prepared by passing a dry stream of hydrogen fluoride containing 50 volume per cent nitrogen over 200 m1 of dried gammaalumina (surface area 180 square meters per gram) in the form of wt: inch pills. The flow rate of the gaseous mixture was 200 volumes per volume of catalyst per hour. The initial temperature of the catalyst was 280F. The gas was passed through the catalyst bed for 4 hours, during which time a hot reaction zone at about 620F. moved through the bed. The resulting catalyst contained 53 per cent fluorine and had a surface area of 29 square meters per gram. The pill strength was 26 pounds, as compared with 17 pounds for the original alumina.

EXAMPLE II A mixture of metered streams of acetylene and hydrogen fluoride was passed over the catalyst prepared in Example I. The catalyst temperature was maintained at 675F. The total flow rate of the reactants was 420 volumes per volume of catalyst per hour; the pressure was atmospheric. The mol ratio of hydrogen fluoride to acetylene was 1.6:]. The reactor effluent, consisting of hydrogen fluoride, acetylene, fluoroethylene and 1,1-difluoroethane, was passed through scrubbing towers to remove unreacted hydrogen fluoride; moisture was then removed with Drierite. The dry gas free of hydrogen fluoride was passed to a meter for volume measurement, and the composition of the gas was determined by averaging the gas chromatographic analyses made hourly during a 6-hour run. The HF-free product thus obtained was 7 mol per cent acetylene, mol per cent fluoroethylene, and 13 mol per cent 1,1-difluoroethane, representing a 93 per cent conversion of acetylene. The yield of fluoroethylene was 1.35 g/g of acetylene charged.

EXAMPLE III Another fluorided alumina catalyst was prepared by passing a dry stream of hydrogen fluoride containing approximately 50 volume per cent nitrogen over 200 ml of eta-alumina in the form of It; inch pills. The average flow rate of the hydrogen fluoride component was 40 volumes per volume of catalyst per hour. The initial temperature of the catalyst was 280F. The gas was passed through the catalyst bed for 4 hours, during which time a reaction zone at about 525F. moved through the bed. The resulting catalyst contained 58.6 .per cent fluorine and had a surface area of 27 square meters per gram. The pill strength was 19 pounds, as compared with 8.2 pounds for the original alumina.

EXAMPLE IV By the general method described in Example 11, acetylene and hydrogen fluoride were allowed to react in the presence of the catalyst prepared in Example III. The mol ratio of hydrogen fluoride to acetylene was 13:1, and the total flow rate of the reactants was 195 volumes per volume of catalyst per hour. The pressure was atmospheric. The catalyst temperature was maintained at 620F. Conversion of the acetylene was 96 per cent complete, and the ratio of fluoroethylene to l,1-difluoroethane was 3.2: 1.

EXAMPLE V To demonstrate the use of my invention to remove acetylenic hydrocarbons from a mixed hydrocarbon stream, in a series of runs, mixtures of various concentrations of acetylene, ethylene and hydrogen fluoride were passed for 6 hours at atmospheric pressure over 150 ml of a catalyst prepared in similar manner to that of Example III, above. Feed compositions were checked periodically by gas chromatographic analysis. The effluent from the reactor containing the catalyst was passed through aqueous sodium hydroxide to remove unreacted hydrogen fluoride. The HF-free gas was then metered, .dried and passed to an on-stream sampling system for chromatographic analysis; the analyses were made hourly and averaged to obtain representative values for a given experiment. In all of the experiments, 99 to 100 per cent of the ethylene was recovered, as determined by volume measurements and gas chromatographic analysis, and 87 to 92 per cent of the acetylene was converted to fluoroethylene and 1,1-difluoroethane, based on gas chromatographic analysis of the acid-free reactor effluent. These values for acetylene conversion do not include the small amounts (approximately 1 per cent) of acetylene which are normally left on the catalyst as a coke-like deposit. Mass spectrometer analysis indicated there was no fluoroethane in the reaction product. The conversions of acetylene and ethylene are summarized in Table I, together with the corresponding feed compositions, total feed flow rates, and catalyst temperatures. Table II shows the compositions of the HF-free reacted effluent, calculated on an ethylene-free basis from each of the corresponding experiments in Table I.

TABLE I Feed composition, mole percent Total Catalyst OzII CZIII flow rate, tcmp., cnv., conv., Exp. HF C2112 C1114 v0l./vol./hr. F. percent percent TABLE II fluoroethylene to l.l-difluoroethane, other runs have Emuemcom Osman Mole shown that this ratio increases with continued use of Exp C2"! E CHQCHFZ the catalyst following reactivation. 212 1-0 5 5 Before Catalyst Reactivation 3 13 st 6 4 13 68 I9 CH HF CH H Pass 5 H 72 17 ,=C 3C F2 Yield, g. 6 8 82 10 C 7 Mole Ratio CHZ=CHF per n After removal of hydrogen fluoride, and calculated on an ethyleneo 2 o m g C'H cillazrged free basis.

After Catalyst Reactivation Thus, acetylene, by conversion of fluoroethylene and P Pass BI l,l-difluoroethane, was largely removed from streams CHFCHFICHsCHF, Yield, containing acetylene and ethylene, whereas the C2H2 Mole Ratio CHFCHF P ethylene remained unreacted COIN- in ro c t g. CzHi gharged EXAMPLE VI EXAMPLE vn After the catalyst prepared in Example III had been used in the hydrofluorination of acetylene for 40 hours following its fifth reactivation with air, it was reactivated by passing dry air through the reactor containing the catalyst at an initial temperature of 800F. The flow rate of the air was controlled at about 150 volumes per volume of catalyst per hour so as to prevent the temperature of the hot zone which moved through the catalyst bed from exceeding 950F., thereby avoiding sintering of the catalyst. Determination of the carbon oxides produced during the combustion showed the carbon content of the catalyst prior to reactivation to have been 10.4 weight per cent. Fluorine loss during the combustion was 3.0 weight per cent of the fluorine initially present; this loss was determined by absorption of the evolved hydrogen fluoride in water, and subsequent titration with standard base. After the combustion was completed, the catalyst chamber was flushed with nitrogen, and the catalyst temperature was lowered to 600675F. Hydrogen fluoride was then passed over the catalyst at 600675 F. for about 1 hour to replace the fluorine lost during the combustion.

To demonstrate the effectiveness of the reactivated catalyst, results obtained in the hydrofluorination of acetylene during 6-hour runs immediately preceding and immediately following the reactivation were compared. In each of these runs hydrogen fluoride and acetylene in an HF/C l-l mole ratio of 1.4 were passed, at atmospheric pressure and at a total flow rate of 400 volumes per volume of catalyst per hour, over the catalyst maintained at a temperature of 675F. The

A fluorided alumina catalyst was prepared by passing a dry stream of hydrogen fluoride containing 50 volume per cent nitrogen over 200 ml of eta-alumina for a period of 4 hours. The catalyst temperature at the beginning of the fluoride treatment was 280F. During the 4-hour treatment the temperature of the catalyst rose to a maximum of 640F. as the reaction zone passed through the catalyst bed, then decreased to a value approaching the initial temperature. The flow rate of the combined hydrogen fluoride and nitrogen was 200 volumes per volume of catalyst per hour. The resulting catalyst, after being used in the preparation of fluoroethylene from acetylene and hydrogen fluoride in three runs totaling 15 hours in reaction time, was employed in the experiment in Example VIII, at which time the catalyst contained about 59.4 per cent fluorine, had a pill strength of about 19 pounds, and had a surface area of about 20 square meters per gram.

EXAMPLE VIII A mixture of metered streams of hydrogen fluoride and chloroethylene was passed over the catalyst prepared in Example VII. The catalyst temperature was maintained at 650F. The total flow rate of the reactants was 178 volumes per volume of catalyst per hour; the pressure was atmospheric. The mol ratio of hydrogen fluoride to chloroethylene was 1.37:1. The reactor effluent was passed through scrubbing towers to remove hydrogen fluoride and hydrogen chloride; moisture was then removed with Drierite. The dry gas free of hydrogen fluoride and hydrogen chloride was passed to a meter for volume measurement, and the composition of the gas was determined by averaging the gas chromatographic analyses made hourly during a 6-hour run. The dry gas thus analyzed was 0.9 mol per cent acetylene, 4.6 mol per cent fluoroethylene, 1.8 mol per cent l,l-difluoroethane, and 92.7 mol per cent chloroethylene. Thus, 7.3 per cent of the chloroethylene was converted, 63 per cent of the converted portion yielding the desired fluoroethylene.

No conversion occurred when chloroethylene alone, in the absence of hydrogen fluoride, was passed over the same catalyst under similar conditions.

EXAMPLElX A fluorided alumina catalyst was prepared from gamma-alumina and hydrogen fluoride by the method of Example I. After having been used in the hydrofluorination of acetylene, this catalyst contained 55.3 per cent fluorine and had a surface area of 10 square meters per gram. The catalyst was then used in the dehydrofluorination of 1,1-difluoroethane to fluoroethylene at various temperatures within the range of about 550 F. to 770 F. In each instance l,1- difluoroethane was passed over the catalyst at a flow rate of 75 volumes per volume of catalyst per hours; the pressure was atmospheric. The effluent, after removal of hydrogen fluoride with aqueous potassium hydroxide, was analyzed by gas chromatography. In the table below are summarized the degree of conversion of the 1,1-difluoroethane and the composition of the hydrogen fluoride-free effluent obtained in runs carried out at various dehydrofluorination temperatures.

DEHYDROFLUORINATION OF 1, l DIFLUOROETHANE Temp., CH CHF HF-Free Effluent Composition,

Mole F. Conv., CH=CH CH CHF CH CHF 565 55 1.0 54.4 44.6 590 57 0.8 55.9 43.3 610 74 1.8 72.0 26.2 655 85 5.0 80.2 14.8

690 89 7.0 81.7 ll.3 695 89 7.0 81.8 l 1.2 745 94 15.7 78.4 5.9 750 94 16.4 77.4 6.2 770 95 24.7 70.7 4.6

It will be understood that the preceding examples have been given for illustrative purposes solely and that my invention is not limited to the specific embodiments shown therein. Many variations and modifications may be made within the scope of the general disclosure without departing from the spirit of my invention.

From the preceding description and example, it will be seen that I have discovered a new catalytic composition for performing hydrofluorination and dehydrofluorination reactions. The catalyst is physically strong, active, and selective for the production of monofluorinated olefinic hydrocarbons.

I claim:

1. The process of preparing fluoroethylene by passing a gaseous mixture of HF and chloroethylene over a catalyst previously prepared by heating a bed of porous alumina selected from eta-alumina, gamma-alumina and bauxite to a temperature of at least 220F. and flowing therethrough a gaseous mixture of HF and an inert diluent until the hot zone of chemical reaction at a temperature in the range of about 300 to 800F. has passed completely through said bed.

2. The process of claim 1 wherein the flow rate of the gaseous mixture of HF and inert diluent is within the range of 10 to 1000 volumes (standard conditions) per volume of catalyst per hour.

3. The process of claim 2 wherein the flow rate of the gaseous mixture is within a range of to 300 volumes (standard conditions) per volume of catalyst per hour.

4. The process of claim 1 wherein the temperature of the reaction is maintained within the range of 500F to 750F.

5. The process of claim 1 wherein the mol ratio of HF to chloroethylene is in the range of 0. 1 :l to 10:1. 

2. The process of claim 1 wherein the flow rate of the gaseous mixture of HF and inert diluent is within the range of 10 to 1000 volumes (standard conditions) per volume of catalyst per hour.
 3. The process of claim 2 wherein the flow rate of the gaseous mixture is within a range of 100 to 300 volumes (standard conditions) per volume of catalyst per hour.
 4. The process of claim 1 wherein the temperature of the reaction is maintained within the range of 500*F to 750*F.
 5. The process of claim 1 wherein the mol ratio of HF to chloroethylene is in the range of 0.1:1 to 10:1. 